Find Spot record MDO44631 - Roman sword, scabbard parts and coin

A Roman sword, parts of a scabbard and a coin of Claudius I bought by the Ashmolean Museum in 1948 are thought possibly to have come from the Roman fort on Waddon Hill.

The sword is 23" long, with tinned bronze fragments of a scabbard mount. The sestertius is a `Spes Augusta' of Claudius I. <1>

An iron sword classified as a Roman legionary gladius, some fragments of bronze from a scabbard, and a bronze coin, all
said to be from `Long Windsor' in Dorset, were purchased by the Ashmolean Museum in 1948.

The coin, one of several found with the sword, is a sestertius of Claudius.

Long Windsor remains unidentified, but is thought to refer to Broadwindsor (ST 4302) or a locality within it, in which case the sword and associated objects may be a stray find from the Roman fort on Waddon Hill (ST 40 SW 15). <2>

National Record of the Historic Environment, 193116 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Ashmolean Museum, 1948, Ashmolean Museum Report for 1948, 24 (Serial). SDO18752.

<2> Griffiths, N A, 1979, A Gladius from Dorset, in the Ashmolean Museum; Britannia, Volume 10, November 1979, pp.259-260 (Article in serial). SDO18751.

Record last edited

Nov 9 2022 4:12PM